Credit card PIN number in Croatia/Montenegro

[jshli]

Do I need a PIN number to use my credit card in Croatia and Montenegro?

[rhiannon84]

Yes. There may very occasionally still be times where you swipe & sign, but that’s usually because the card chip reader isn’t working. Contactless payment is increasingly common, but there’s still limits on how much you can pay before a PIN is required.

 

if you have a smartphone, consider getting Apple Wallet or similar. Also, both countries use the Euro, so take some cash as well.

 

https://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/money/chip-pin-cards 

[Hlitner]

About 10 years ago we ran into some problems using US issued credit cards that did not have a Pin.  More recently, the cards generally work with or without a signature.  We do have Apple Pay set-up on our phone.  Keep in mind that if using Apple Pay, depending on your card you may incur foreign exchange fees.  Some cards (Chase Sapphire, AMEX Platinum, several CaptitalOne cards, etc) have no foreign exchange fees.  

 

One other suggestion is that we find it wise to have enough Euros so that we can pay cash if cards do not work or are not accepted.  More than once, we have been at a European restaurant (or even a B&B) when the credit card system was down.  Most recently it happened in Bruges and it did cause some real problems at the restaurant where we had dined. Quite a few customers had to go down the street to a nearby ATM to get Euros, because the credit card reader would not work.  Technology is great, but there are times when it can let everyone down.

 

Another interesting thing happened when we went to a museum in Stockholm.   Sweden has gone somewhat cashless, and many places are no longer used to using cash.  At one major museum, DW was required to lock-up her purse in a locker.  The lockers were the old kind where you had to insert the appropriate coin to remove the key.  When you later unlocked the locker you would get your coin returned.  The problem is that hardly anyone in Sweden carries coins (or cash).  So the museum's information desk gave out coins (for free) and begged folks to please return the coins because they also had a shortage.   

 

Hank

[gfkcruiser]

14 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

About 10 years ago we ran into some problems using US issued credit cards that did not have a Pin.  More recently, the cards generally work with or without a signature.  We do have Apple Pay set-up on our phone.  Keep in mind that if using Apple Pay, depending on your card you may incur foreign exchange fees.  Some cards (Chase Sapphire, AMEX Platinum, several CaptitalOne cards, etc) have no foreign exchange fees.  

 

One other suggestion is that we find it wise to have enough Euros so that we can pay cash if cards do not work or are not accepted.  More than once, we have been at a European restaurant (or even a B&B) when the credit card system was down.  Most recently it happened in Bruges and it did cause some real problems at the restaurant where we had dined. Quite a few customers had to go down the street to a nearby ATM to get Euros, because the credit card reader would not work.  Technology is great, but there are times when it can let everyone down.

 

Another interesting thing happened when we went to a museum in Stockholm.   Sweden has gone somewhat cashless, and many places are no longer used to using cash.  At one major museum, DW was required to lock-up her purse in a locker.  The lockers were the old kind where you had to insert the appropriate coin to remove the key.  When you later unlocked the locker you would get your coin returned.  The problem is that hardly anyone in Sweden carries coins (or cash).  So the museum's information desk gave out coins (for free) and begged folks to please return the coins because they also had a shortage.   

 

Hank

When in Bruges last year, dined outside the in the old town and was surprised when large restaurant preferred cash.  Had not much euros on me and took my card but had to go inside and use traditional card reader.  Did not have card reader that is brought to table. Contrary to no one uses cash in Europe 

[Hlitner]

16 minutes ago, gfkcruiser said:

When in Bruges last year, dined outside the in the old town and was surprised when large restaurant preferred cash.  Had not much euros on me and took my card but had to go inside and use traditional card reader.  Did not have card reader that is brought to table. Contrary to no one uses cash in Europe 

Hmm, almost like a conspiracy in Bruges.  A few years ago we had booked a high-end B&B near the center of Bruges.  The place was really nice and we were delighted when we arrived and was met by the owner who handed us a glass of nice wine.  He than informed us that his card reader had not been working for weeks because of problem with his bank.  He needed to be paid in Euros and, since we were staying there a few days, we owed him more than $1000 Euros.  In those days, daily ATM withdrawals were limited to a few hundred.  It took me two days, using two different ATM cards, to get all the necessary cash.  A real pain.

 

One big change, in the past few years, is that one of my ATM banks (who used to have a $500 daily withdrawal limit) now allows me to go into my account (via smartphone) and raise the daily withdrawal limit (for only that day) to a max of $4500.  This is another of those situations where we have explained to some posters (here on CC) that having a working Smartphone is almost a necessity for independent travelers.  There are still some cruisers who do not have a smartphone and have indicated they have no desire to have a smart phone.  I compare them to folks who still ride horses and do not have a car.

 

Hank